


11th October

by JayofOlympus



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Bisexual Jason Todd, Coming Out, Coming Out Day, Gen, Mentions of conversion therapy, Nonbinary Character, Nonbinary Tim Drake, Sibling Bonding, T for swearing, Trans Character, Trans Jason Todd, Trans Male Character, no editing we die like robins, use of the word queer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:14:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26959372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayofOlympus/pseuds/JayofOlympus
Summary: Tim probably came to the wrong person for coming out stories, but Jason's willing to help anyway.
Relationships: Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Roy Harper/Jason Todd (mentioned), Tim Drake & Jason Todd, Tim Drake/Kon-El | Connor Kent (mentioned)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 240





	11th October

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time posting anything for this fandom, but I spent all day thinking about Jason, and the batfam, and the process of coming out. I then spent 5 pages on this thing.
> 
> It's nearly midnight here, and I've barely slept this week, but I really wanted to post this on Coming Out Day, so if there are any glaring errors, I apologise.
> 
> There is a very brief mention of conversion therapy, in the context of Jason reflecting on past fears. If that bothers you, skip from "He’d been worried, at the time," to "Bruce had shown up at breakfast three days later".

Jason had stopped for a cigarette, seated on his favourite gargoyle. There was a slight chill in the air, and Gotham bustled below him. People knew to start doing their Halloween prep early in Gotham; nobody wanted to get caught with their pants down at the end of the month, when any number of the colourful freaks from Arkham would be trying to outdo each others’ over the top schemes. At least they could all count on Ivy and Croc to keep their heads down on Halloween.

He heard the scrape and hiss of a grapple, and took another drag of his cigarette. A flash of red and black at his side confirmed his suspicions.

“Need something, Replacement?”

Tim huffed, sounding more like he was suppressing a chuckle than an indignant argument.

“What? I can’t just hang out with my brother without needing something?” he teased, sitting down close enough to reach out a hand to rest on Jason’s helmet, set on the ledge at Jason’s side. Jason could hear the kid’s fingers _tap tap tapping_ on the top of it.

“Y’know, _sane_ people pick someone who hasn’t tried to murder them as conversation partners,” Jason said, failing to keep a grin off his face. He didn’t really mind all that much; this was all familiar ground after all.

Tim just laughed, loud and happy in a way that was far too rare for him. “Sane people don’t get dressed up in kevlar, punch criminals, and hang out on gargoyles,” he pointed out.

Jason shook his head, laughing. The kid had a damn good point; not a single one of the Bats could claim to be any more sane than the technicolour assholes they fought.

“I-” Tim cut himself off, frowning like he was mad at himself for trying to start a sentence without knowing how to end it. “Can-”

Jason stubbed out what was left of his cigarette, turning a little to get a better look at him. The kid looked like he hadn’t been sleeping again.

“Whatever this is, can we do it at my apartment?” Jason asked, hoping Tim would eat and get some shut-eye if he had some kind-of adult supervision. Roy had headed out a little after Jason had started his patrol, and wouldn’t be back for a couple days, but Jason was pretty sure he could either guilt-trip or threaten Tim into taking care of himself for one night. “I made gumbo earlier and I’ve been looking forward to eating it all night.”

Tim nodded hesitantly, and Jason bit back the worry that threatened to rise in him. It had been a while since Tim had last seemed so nervous around him, but the kid had been the one to seek him out. Whatever this was, Jason _refused_ to believe he’d done anything to cause it. He hadn’t even fought with Bruce lately.

* * *

Tim cleared away the stuff Roy had left lying around the place while Jason dished up some gumbo for the both of them once they were both showered and changed into something a little more comfortable for lounging around in. Their suits might have been built to protect them from knives and bullets, but they weren’t fun to wear while draped over half the couch.

They’d both nearly finished their food before Tim finally decided to talk about whatever was on his mind.

“What was it like?” he asked, and for a single, sickening moment, Jason was sure he was asking about the Pit, or his coffin, or even just _dying in general_ , and he _swore_ his heart stopped beating.

A lot of people had a fascination with his death and subsequent resurrection, but his family had always politely kept their questions to themselves. If they hadn’t, Jason might have had to make them swallow their own teeth.

“What - I mean… how did Bruce react? When you came out to him?” Tim clarified, chewing on his lip.

Jason felt the tension drain from his shoulders, even as his mind scrambled to catch up, because _what the fuck_?

“Uh, Timbo, I think you’re well past the coming out phase here,” he said with a huffed laugh. “If _Dick_ was able to figure you and Kon out, Bruce already knows.”

Tim said nothing, just started fiddling with the hem of his t-shirt, and Jason was starting to get a little nervous.

“Look, Replacement, if you’re hoping for some funny story, or big dramatic reveal, there was never one,” he said, scrubbing a hand through his hair. “Bruce has just kinda always known I was into guys too. We never discussed the details of any of it. He took me to Pride a couple of times - Before. I knew he swings both ways, like me. That was enough.”

Tim shook his head, a blush rising on his too-pale cheeks, and Jason took a moment to make a mental note that the kid needed to see _actual fucking sunlight_ at some point in the near future.

“I didn’t mean-” Tim bit his lip again, and Jason had a feeling he knew where this was going. “I meant… the gender thing.”

And there it was. Jason wasn’t sure why he was curious all of a sudden. The fact that he was trans wasn’t exactly a _secret_ per se, but it wasn’t something most people talked about. When he was first adopted, sure, some people were _way_ too nosy about it, but most people were more concerned with the _rest_ of him to worry much about what was between his legs. The gossip was more about his upbringing. _Now_ all anyone wanted to talk about was his sudden reappearance in high society, and Jason was still pissed at Bruce for having him legally declared alive again; he missed having an excuse to skip out on galas.

He shrugged. “That wasn’t much of a coming out either,” he said. He eyed Tim, trying to deduce his reasoning for asking about this. Maybe one of his teammates had said something? If the Replacement thought any of his teammates was struggling, he was the type to research the shit out of the problem before doing anything. He was kind of like Bruce in that regard. It made sense that he’d look for firsthand experience if he could get it

Jason sighed, sinking further into the couch. If he could make things easier on someone else, then he didn’t mind telling the story too much. Especially to Tim. He was a good kid, not that Jason was ever gonna _say_ that to him. It would ruin his image.

“I was going by Jason long before I met Bruce,” he said. “My mom helped me pick the name. It was- it was before things got bad. She didn’t _get_ it, but she wanted me to be happy.Willis was an ass about it, but he was an ass about everything.”

Tim had curled up so that his knees were tucked under his chin, his arms wrapped tight around them.

“When Bruce asked me what my name was, I told him,” Jason continued, fighting back a wry smile at the memory of glaring up at the _goddamn Batman_ with a crowbar clenched in one tiny fist like he had any chance of winning that fight. “When he bought me new clothes, once I’d moved in, he slipped a dress in there. It was a nice dress; the kinda thing that would look good on Cass.” That dress was burned into his memory with startling clarity, given the way the Pit had warped so many other memories.

“He thought you were pretending to be a boy,” Tim said, looking deep in thought. “Safer to be a boy living on the streets.”

Jason snorted. “ _God_ , it’s obvious you’re both rich boys,” he said, a little meaner than he meant, he made sure to soften his voice before he spoke again. “I was eleven, on my own, and half starved; I wouldn’t have been any safer either way.”

Tim chewed on his lip again, nodding slowly. “So what happened?”

“I threw the dress in his face and screamed at him about how I wasn’t a girl and I’d gut him the next time he tried to say I was,” Jason said. He didn’t mention the absolute terror he’d felt after that, or the way he’d barricaded himself in his room, panicking and trying to make a plan for getting back to the Alley from all the way out in Bristol.

Tim grinned at him, likely amused by the mental image of a baffled Bruce having a dress smack him dead in the face without any apparent prompting. It _had_ been a hilarious expression, once Jason had calmed down enough to laugh about it.

“Let me guess, that was the first time Alfred gave you into trouble for swearing?” Tim laughed. He was actually pretty close, but Jason wasn’t about to tell him that.

“Nah, he just gave Bruce a Look, and said ‘if the lad wanted a dress, I’m quite sure he’d ask for one’,” Jason said, imitating Alfred’s unflappable calm perfectly, complete with arched eyebrow that asked why the person causing the expression insisted on being so insufferably idiotic. Y’know, stuff Alfred never actually had to _say_ , ‘cause his face said it all for him.

Tim fell into laughter, whatever nerves he’d been feeling forgotten for the moment. Every time he got himself under control, Jason just arched his eyebrow at him again, and the laughing continued.

It was nice. Tim was far too serious for a seventeen year old.

When they both finally calmed down, Jason was happy to note that Tim remained sprawled out on his side of the couch, instead of curling back up into his defensive little ball.

“So, how long did Bruce spend researching after the dress incident?” Tim asked, still grinning.

“Well, I didn’t see him again for about three days,” Jason said, shooting the kid a knowing smirk.

He’d been worried, at the time, that Bruce was still planning on throwing him out, or sending him somewhere. He’d heard of kids like him getting sent off to places where they’d torture the queer outta you, and while Bruce hadn’t exactly struck him as the religious fundamentalist type, Jason had still been terrified of what the sudden disappearance of his new legal guardian had meant.

Bruce had shown up at breakfast three days later with a bunch of papers; articles about trans kids from all kinds of medical journals. He’d wanted to have a discussion about _options_. Jason had cried and hidden in his room again, and it took them about a week to actually talk about it. After that, Bruce worked _fast_ , and there was a plan laid out for every single aspect of the medical side of Jason’s transition before Bruce even went public about taking him in.

Tim had gone quiet again, still relaxed, but deep in thought.

“Why the sudden interest?” Jason asked, idly wondering if he should maybe offer to be there if whoever had started this all needed someone to talk to.

Tim started to curl in on himself again, and Jason cursed himself for saying anything.

“Shit, sorry,” he said, scrubbing a hand through his hair. “I don’t wanna pry, I just- I thought-”

Tim shook his head. “No, it’s-” he cut himself off, drawing in a deep breath. “I don’t- I wasn’t prepared to-” Jason leaned forward, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I want to _prepare_ before I say anything.”

Realisation dawned on Jason, and he used his grip on Tim’s shoulder to gently turn the kid toward him. “You don’t have to say _anything_ to _anybody_ until you’re ready, alright?” he said firmly. “You don’t gotta tell me, or Bruce, or anybody else.”

Tim nodded, almost frantically. “I know,” he said, “I _know_. I just-” he huffed out a breath, steeling himself as he drew back from Jason’s grip, just enough to look him in the eye. “I think- No, no, I _am_ non-binary. I’m… fluid? I think. I was… I was hoping you’d have some advice for coming out to Bruce.”

Jason gave the kid a smile, feeling _so fucking proud_. “Well, throwing clothes at him worked for me,” he said, laughing.

The kid laughed too, and Jason felt himself relax, knowing he’d helped, even a little. And knowing that the kid trusted him this much, with something so personal, was a heady feeling. He never thought he’d be the first one any of his siblings turned to for anything besides help in disposing of bodies. Not that that had happened yet, but Damian still had enough of a temper that it was a possibility.

A thought struck Jason, and he turned to the kid again. “What pronouns do you want me to use?”

Tim seemed startled. “I… he and him, still?” he said, hesitant. Jason raised an eyebrow, either the kid hadn’t thought about it, or he thought Jason would judge him. “If… If I change my mind, or if it’s ever different, I’ll tell you.”

Jason nodded, satisfied. “Alright, and are you still cool with being called Tim, or were you thinking about changing it?”

“No, Tim’s fine,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t think I want to change it.” He slumped over, leaning his head on Jason’s shoulder, apparently more comfortable now. Jason knew how much of a rush it was to be able to tell people _this is who I am_ and have them listen.

Jason could feel Tim starting to drift off not long after that, and poked him in the cheek until his hand was slapped away.

“C’mon, bedtime for little birdies,” Jason said, throwing Tim over his shoulder as he stood. The kid was way too skinny, in his opinion, given how easily Jason was able to haul him around.

He set Tim up in the spare room, then shuffled off to his own bed, grabbing Roy’s pillow and hugging it to his chest. He felt the sudden urge to reach for his phone, and he didn’t fight it, grinning to himself when he noticed the date.

He sent the message before he gave himself any time to second guess himself, and the reply came so quickly that he didn’t even have time to set the phone down before it buzzed in his hand.

_Happy coming out day, B. Timbit’s crashing here_

_Happy Coming Out Day, Jaylad_

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Coming Out Day, and much love to everyone in the LGBTQ+ community today, whether you're out or not.


End file.
